Kohli backed Ravi Shastri to continue as India head coach
Should India drop Rohit Sharma and bring in an extra spinner? Or should fast bowler Umesh Yadav make way for Amit Mishra?
'In the medium term, the advantage is still with the BJP.' 'One reason for this is Shah's talent. He is a terrific organiser and builds his strategies around the grassroots worker,' says Aakar Patel.
Out-of-favour India openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir found some form going their way as Delhi got the better of Himachal Pradesh by six wickets in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 match for North Zone in Mohali on Tuesday. Sehwag smashed 42 off 32 balls, while the left-handed captain Gambhir scored a 40-ball 41, helping Delhi complete the chase of 134 with 10 deliveries to spare at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium.
The severity of air pollution and dense Smog cover in the capital on Sunday led to the cancellation of the Ranji Trophy encounter between Bengal (rpt Bengal) and Gujarat at the Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium on the second day itself. Both Bengal and Gujarat teams will be leaving Delhi on Monday for Kolkata and Ahmedabad respectively. The situation is not expected to improve for a few more days which effectively ruled out any chance of play. Match referee P Ranganathan, in consultation with BCCI and the respective state associations, decided that there is no point in waiting for two more days.
Some of his team-mates may have considered Anil Kumble 'strict' but India's Test wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha never felt that about the former coach, who quit after a bitter fallout with captain Virat Kohli.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India president Jagmohan Dalmiya clarified his stance on Mahendra Singh Dhoni's alleged conflict of interest issue, saying that a newspaper misquoted him on the Indian ODI skipper being probed by the Board.
In the backdrop of the developments surrounding cricket in India, sixteen-time world champion in cuesports Pankaj Advani feels that any sports code would only yield results if athletes and measures to support them are given primacy. "The world's sports policy needs to be centred on the athletes and their requirements. Only then will it be successful," he said on the sidelines of the 3rd Kolkata Open National Invitation Snooker Championship 2017 organised by the West Bengal Billiards Association which kicked off today at the Bengal Rowing Club.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Manoj Tiwary and Sudip Chatterjee scored centuries to lead Bengal's spirited comeback against Mumbai, while Gujarat put themselves in line for full seven points after enforcing the follow-on against Punjab. A round up of Day 3 of the Ranji Trophy matches.
Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan said he wants his youngest son, five-year-old AbRam, to grow up to be a hockey player and represent the country in international stage.
Punjab rode on some brilliant batting by India discard Yuvraj Singh to thrash Haryana by 120 runs in the Group B Ranji Trophy match in Patiala on Wednesday. The man-of-the-match made it count for the Mandeep Singh-led side by scoring 59 in the first innings and a brilliant 130 in the second. A summary of the action in matches across the country.
Flamboyant Australian Glenn Maxwell is expected to be a favourite, despite his under-whelming record, along with England's spin bowling all-rounder Moeen Ali, while Kerala's batting sensation Mohammed Azharuddeen could be in hot demand during a condensed IPL players' auction, to be held in Chennai, on Thursday.
Sanju Samson smashed 72 off 56 balls as Kerala completed a five wicket win over Punjab to cruise into the quarterfinals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, in Kochi, on Saturday.
Punjab rode on a solid batting display to post a massive 560 for 6 declared before reducing Odisha to 110 for 2 in their second innings on Day 3, in their Group A Ranji Trophy match in Mohali on Tuesday.
A summary of Tuesday's play in the Ranji Trophy matches at various venues across the country.
A summary of the second day's play in the Ranji Trophy matches.
A summary of the day's play in the Ranji Trophy matches at different venues around the country.
The All India Football Federation is considering 'legal action' against organisers of Premier Futsal League, headed by legendary Portuguese playmaker Luis Figo.
A round-up of results from the matches played at the Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 cricket tournament across the country.
The money-spinning Indian Premier League has mulled a closed-door edition in a desperate bid to avoid cancellation as the deadly COVID-19 sent Indian sports into quarantine after a government directive for fans to be kept away from all action to prevent the pandemic from spreading.
'It remains to be seen how much Prithvi Shaw's warriors go on to accomplish, but letting all the adulation go to their heads is the last thing you can expect.' 'Throughout its dominant streak in New Zealand, the Under-19 team played in the personality of its coach, Rahul Dravid.' 'Now, only if they can kick on and become as good as him.'
Rediff.com lists 10 athletes who died way before time.
Needing 95 to win, Delhi knocked off the runs in 14.1 overs with Unmukt Chand hitting 51 off 41 balls, striking 9 fours and a six, while skipper Gautam Gambhir's 44 ball 45 had seven fours.
Round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches being played in different parts of the country.
A summary of Monday's play in the Ranji Trophy matches at various venues across the country.
Rajasthan suffered the ignominy of being bowled out for a paltry 35 against Railways in a Central Zone leg match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, in Nagpur, on Tuesday. Railways needed just 5.3 overs, losing a solitary wicket, to hit up the required runs.
A summary of the day's play in the Vijay Hazare One-day tournament.
Left-arm spinner Vishal Dabholkar shone with a four-wicket haul as Mumbai demolished Punjab by 180 runs to register their second successive win in the Ranji Trophy in Chandigarh.
India captain Virat Kohli has postponed the RP-SG Indian Sports Honours, which was to take place on Saturday, as a 'mark of respect' to the Central Reserve Police Force personnel martyred in the Pulwama terrorist attack.
Vikas stepped into the house, dialled a number and handed his cell phone to Raj Kumar, Virat Kohli's childhood coach. "Happy Teachers' Day, Sir," said Virat, even as Vikas thrust something into Raj Kumar's palm -- a bunch of keys. A fascinating excerpt from Vijay Lokapally's must read biography of the cricket superstar.
Round up of the Ranji Trophy matches being played across the country
Off-spinner Gurkeerat Singh Mann registered his career best bowling figures as Punjab defeated a sorry-looking Andhra by seven wickets on the second day of a Group 'B' Ranji Trophy match, in Patiala, on Saturday.
Loud applause and cheers rang out as the first jabs were administered to frontline workers at hospitals and healthcare centres across the country on Saturday at the start of the gargantuan COVID-19 vaccination exercise, hailed as a 'momentous' occasion in India's fight against the pandemic.
Mumbai's captain saluted his players after the 132-run victory over Mumbai in the final.
A summary of the day's matches in the Vijay Hazare One-day tournament.
104-year-old bodybuilder Manohar Aich, who was once a household name in Bengal after becoming India's first Mr Universe in 1952, died at his Baguiati residence this afternoon, according to family sources. "Aich was on a liquid died for last 10-15 days and had stopped talking. He breathed his last at 3.50pm," his son Khokan Aich told PTI. Aich is survived by two daughters and two sons, one of whom manages a gym and fitness centre to fulfill his father's dream of making the youth "healthy and strong". "Never quit exercise, he would always say. His mantra to stay healthy was simple - healthy eating and exercise," Khokan added. Former Bengal cricket captain Laxmi Ratan Shukla, who is Minister of State for Sports, visited Aich's residence to offer his condolence. Aich, who turned 104 on March 17, had become India's first Mr Universe when he won the 1952 National Amateur Body-Builders' Association Universe Championships. Born in the district of Comilla (now in Bangladesh), Aich, at just four feet and 11 inches, was not the tallest of men. But encouraged by English officer Reub Martin, Aich took up bodybuilding and made this his passion during his stint at the Royal Air Force under British colonial rulers. He also went on to serve jail term when some years later he protested against colonial oppression, something which Aich considered as "turning point" in his life.
Stuart Binny celebrated his maiden call-up into the Indian team with a scintillating 88 as table toppers Karnataka asserted their supremacy with a solid performance, scoring 226 for 5 at stumps on the second day of their final Ranji Trophy match against hosts Delhi, who are almost out of the race for a quarter-final berth.
A summary of Wednesday's play in the Ranji Trophy matches at various venues across the country.
A round-up of Ranji matches played on Sunday